Earth is entering a narrow stream of solar wind flowing from this coronal hole. Credit: SDO/AIA.

SPACE WEATHERNOAA Forecasts

Updated at: 2012 Feb 05 2200 UTC

FLARE

0-24 hr

24-48 hr

CLASS M

01 %

01 %

CLASS X

01 %

01 %

Geomagnetic Storms:Probabilities for significant disturbances in Earth's magnetic field are given for three activity levels: active, minor storm, severe storm

Updated at: 2012 Feb 05 2200 UTC

Mid-latitudes

0-24 hr

24-48 hr

ACTIVE

01 %

01 %

MINOR

01 %

01 %

SEVERE

01 %

01 %

High latitudes

0-24 hr

24-48 hr

ACTIVE

10 %

10 %

MINOR

01 %

01 %

SEVERE

01 %

01 %

Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012

What's up in space

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QUIET SUN: All of the sunspots on the Earthside of the sun are magnetically simple and quiet, and the sun's X-ray output has consequently flatlined. NOAA forecasters estimate the chance of significant flares today to be no more than 1%. Solar flare alerts:text, voice.

AURORA WATCH: Earth passed through a minor solar wind stream on Feb. 4-5. The weak impact of the solar wind was just enough to spark auroras around parts of the Arctic Circle. Frank Olsen sends this 20-second exposure from the waterfront outside Tromsø, Norway:

"Despite bright moonlight and low solar activity, there were some great auroras last night," says Olsen.

The effects of the solar wind are subsiding, and the auroras might disappear into the moonlight for the next few nights. Geomagnetic activity is expected to hover at low levels for the next 48 hours. Aurora alerts:text, voice.

BE ALERT FOR MOON HALOES: With the full Moon less than a week away, now is the time to be alert for Moon haloes. Tom Soetaert photographed this spooky specimen over Lawrence, Kansas, on Feb. 2nd:

Moon halos are formed by ice crystals in high clouds, which catch moonbeams and bend them as shown. The brighter the Moon, the brighter the Moon halo, so any halos this weekend should be very bright indeed. The Moon is full on Feb. 7th. Browse the links below for more examples of what's in store.

Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs) are space rocks larger than approximately 100m that can come closer to Earth than 0.05 AU. None of the known PHAs is on a collision course with our planet, although astronomers are finding new ones all the time.